New York screenwriter Walter Bernstein, 93, has been voting for Oscars since 1969. Photo:

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Rita Gam, a one-time starlet of the 1950s, doesn’t always see all the movies on the Oscars roster — but as a member of the prestigious Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, she always makes sure to vote.

“I never missed a year voting since 1954 — since I’ve made movies,” says Gam, 85, who appeared in classics such as 1952’s “The Thief,” which earned her academy membership, and 1961’s “King of Kings.”

“One is always an active member — until you go to heaven.”

The classic beauty, who was once married to Sidney Lumet “back when he was an actor,” was also a onetime roommate of Grace Kelly.

So which movies is she excited about on this year’s roster?

“Amour”? Never heard of it.

“Life of Pi”? Blank stare.

“Zero Dark Thirty”? Hasn’t seen that yet.

“I voted for ‘Argo’!” she says triumphantly.

Ben Affleck for Best Director? “I think he’s up there!”

Indeed.

Oscar is having a bit of a senior moment. The Academy Awards, now more than ever, is trying to attract younger viewers, with “Family Guy” comedian Seth MacFarlane tapped to host and a far-reaching social-media campaign including Twitter, Facebook, Google Plus, YouTube and a free mobile app all at full throttle.

Still, as the LA Times reported last year, the median age of academy members is 62, with only 14 percent younger than 50. Given this, it’s hardly surprising that the Oscars are often criticized as being irrelevant and out of touch with pop culture.

Regarding MacFarlane, “Not many of the older members know who the host is — he’s very attractive; he looks like a schoolboy,” says Arlene Dahl, who, in addition to being the mother of Lorenzo Lamas, is also a three-time Life magazine cover model who appeared in such works as the 1947 film “My Wild Irish Rose.”

“We’re used to Bob Hope and Billy Crystal. It’s too bad we don’t have anybody representing the motion-picture industry like in the past. I’ve written things to the president.”

According to the rules of the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, membership in the gilded institution is lifelong — and the only way out is a death certificate. Of course, there is some attrition. The annual dues, which Dahl and others claim are $250 a year, are not insignificant for this group. Members who stop paying their dues lose their voting privileges.

“When you’re on a pension and a limited budget, it adds up,” says Dahl. “When you’re not working, or an out-of-work actor or retired, you’re on a strict budget — and that $250 matters!”

Still, there are perks. Every year, during the prime Oscars campaigning season from October to December, active members of the academy are feted at fabulous lunches and cocktail parties at some of the swankiest spots on both coasts. Wistful for the long-gone days of pictures, Brown Derby and RKO, they speak a different language — one that doesn’t register with E! and the “Access Hollywood” generation.

“One guy I’ve seen at a lot of events, he was nominated 30 years ago for best animated short and I don’t think he’s done that much since then,” says Scott Feinberg, awards analyst for The Hollywood Reporter.

“And he’s courted just as much as an A-list person. They are largely older, more inactive members, but as long as they pay their dues, they’re allowed to vote.

“A few seasons ago, I was sitting next to a guy who I asked about his favorite films,” says Feinberg. “And he said, ‘I liked “Avatar”; I didn’t like “The Foot Locker,” ’ meaning ‘The Hurt Locker.’ I think there should be voters who know the names of the films. The academy has some strange people.”

After all, members of the college of cardinals older than 80 can’t vote for the new pope — so what makes the academy think many of its body is suitable to vote on “Silver Linings Playbook”?

“If one is a doctor, one doesn’t stop being a doctor,” Gam argues. “You may stop operating, but you never stop being one.”

“I think our members are very thoughtful,” adds Patrick Harrison, New York program director for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

“You come to the table with diverse perspectives. You have veterans in the industry for 40 years who converse with a younger member. We’re moving into the next century and phase of the academy’s growth.”

The academy is now comprised of 6,000 members, including actors, directors, writers, visual-effects masters, makeup artists, hairstylists and more. Whereas members installed 60 years ago recall getting a letter of membership by complete surprise, today’s standards are by comparison more stringent, requiring two letters of recommendation from current members, and depending on the branch, a certain level of experience. And nowadays, the studios spend big bucks to send out all the screeners of the nominated films, to help ensure that all members will see them.

“We know the academy is making a concerted effort to become younger and more diverse, so the winners will be more aligned with the picks of the general public,” says Feinberg.

“It wouldn’t be terrible if they nominated a ‘Dark Knight’ or ‘Skyfall’ once in a while.

“Oscar is always going to be something special because of the history and the tradition,” he adds. “But they need to evolve to remain relevant.”

Still, younger members could certainly stand to learn a thing or two from screenwriter Walter Bernstein who, at 93, is one of the oldest — and most active — members of the New York voting bloc. Bernstein still teaches at NYU and writes, still sees all the movies each year and thinks “Life of Pi” was “marvelously done.”

He rarely watches the telecast on Oscar night: “I might flip through the channels and switch between the Oscars and a movie on TCM.

“I go to the screenings. There are other people who come there who are in the academy for a long time.

“It’s an acknowledgment of our longevity,” says Bernstein, who’s been a member since 1969 and was nominated for an Oscar for the screenplay he wrote for 1976’s “The Front.”

But he “can’t stand the bulls - - t” of the lavish industry events where studios shamelessly parade the talent.

“It’s all vote-buying. The studios would always lay out a buffet, and people would vote based on the food: ‘Columbia had a great spread!’ ‘But it wasn’t as good as Metro!’ ” he jokes, while remaining pragmatic about the annual circus.

“It’s been going on for years. Harvey Weinstein’s trying to buy ‘Silver Linings.’ Why not? Hats off to him — he did it for ‘The Artist.’ He has every right to do that; everyone else does — just not as well as him.”